Fitting Carseat into Various Types of Autos
Berkeley Parents Network >
Reviews >
What/Where to Buy >
Car Seats >
Fitting Carseat into Various Types of Autos
June 2006
Re: Will 2 Kolcraft car seats fit in the back seat of a Passat?
http://www.carseatdata.org/database.html
''Not all car seats fit in all cars. So it would be good thing if you could try out any car seat
in your car before you bought it. But perhaps you don't know how to install a car seat yet, or
maybe you live in rural Montana and can't drive to a store to try out seats yourself in your own
car. That is where the database comes in handy.
Parents and CPS Techs have been sending me information on which seats fit in various cars, and
which do not, since Feb., 1999. I've added my own observations. So all cars are not represented,
and sometimes one parent gets a great fit but another does not. But it may give you an idea of
which seats may be difficult to fit properly into your car, and which may work better.''
N.
May 2005
Theres a growing database on which car seats fit your car... go
check here - and while you're at it, add your experience to help
the next parents!!
www.carseatdata.org
new mom
2002
We are trying to install a Britax carseat bought online into a
VW Passat wagon. It needs to be rear facing. We are having
trouble... I have seen the previous posts on the carseats but
none seem to address the issues we are having. I also
called Rockridge kids and they won't help because the seat
wasn't purchased through them. I am trying to set up a time
with the police department too but we are in a bit of a hurry
so any help would be greatly appreciated- I am due on the
10th. If anyone has a VW Passat wagon and a Britax could
you please contact me. The carseat doesn't recline as much
as needed because of the bucket style of the wagon's seat.
HELP!
Marion
I found a police offier in El Cerrito that was MORE than willing
to help out with the car installation. I brought our new car
seat over to him before our baby was born and he spent 1/2 hour
installing it, showing us how to use it most safely, etc. He is
very kind and will take the time to answer your questions.
Apparently, this is one of the things he specializes in at the
police department in El Cerrito (carseat safety).
His name is Steve Bonini and his number is 510-215-4414 (ext.
5). The department is 10900 San Pablo Ave. @ Manila. Just call
to find out when he will be at the station.
Good luck.
Shira
Installing Rear-facing Britax Roundabout
Alisa
I've read the website's past recommendations about car seats and still have
a few questions. First, can anyone speak to their experiences with the
Gerry Pro-tec (model no. 681-683)? This is a seat that was manufactured
about 5 years ago. Gerry is now Evenflo. We were given a used one and are
not able to find any info other than that it has not been recalled.
Second, regarding the Britax Roundabout: This seems to be a hugely popular
car seat, but some people have had trouble installing it in the rear
position in certain cars. Does anyone have experience using this seat in
the Suburu Legacy? In a Saturn coupe? Is it necessary to have a tether
anchor installed in either of these cars? One concern of ours is that we
will be travelling and will need to use the seat in a rental car. Could
this be problematic?
Rachel
We purchased a Britax Roundabout for our son and although I needed to get
help with the install,
now that I understand it is very simple (rear facing position). At
Rockridge Kids they sell a tether
anchor strap (ask for Christian, he's sooo helpful). This strap is attached
to the bolted seat anchors of
your front seats in your car and the tether strap on the car seat is then
anchored to that. It's very
simple and can move from car to car very easily. Christian will help you
with an install even if you did
not purchase the seat there, he's wonderful! The seat is so snug and
secure, it doesn't budge an inch and
I'm very happy with it. Another concern that I had was my son learning how
to undo the buckles as he got
older. The Britax system seems to me that it will be able to outsmart a
toddler as it's buckles require a
little bit of hand strength. Take Care - Rachel
From: David (1/99)
There's a guy at Rockridge Kids (5511 College) who appears to be the
world's authority on car seat safety and installation. It's been a while
since I spoke to him, but I believe Ann is correct that the Britax is
ideally tethered from the rear of the car, which involves drilling a hole
in the car, and--as I envision--running a strap over the child's head if
s/he is in the rear facing position. This won't make it any easier to get
kiddo in and out, I'm sure.
I believe that all cars since 1978 or so have a pre-drilled hole behind
the center back seat for a tether strap. (Your local Toyota dealer may try
to deny this but I was assured by some agency that my 1984 Toyota Camry
The California distributor can be reached at 1-800-437-5522. I believe it
costs just under $100 and comes with an anchor kit that can be attached to
the pre-drilled hole. The Y Harness is held on top by the bolt and on the
bottom attaches to the lap belt and fits over a child's shoulders. You
should probably use it in conjunction with a booster seat (with no back
and no shield). This company also makes seat belts for people who must
lie in the backseat prone, for school buses, for people in wheelchairs,
etc..
Xanthippe
I have the Britax roundabout carseat and am currently using it
rear facing.a I did not need to buy any additional anchor's for
my car.a There is a thether anchor strap that comes with the car
seat (or purchased from Rockridge Kids) that enables you to use the
hardware under the front seats as the anchor.a It is quite simple to do.a
I am going to turn the seat around to forward facing soon and I did
purchase an anchor from our car manufacturer (Ford) to use the thether.
When it is forward facing, I'm not sure if the thether is really needed,
or just more of an added safety measure, as I would imagine the seatbelt
alone should be able to prevent any seat movement.a Good Luck!
Rachel
I highly recommend getting the Britax Roundabout car seat versus any other.
After discussing car seats at length with the CHP and the NHTSA (?), I
believe that Britax has the safest car seats on the market. I would also
recommend contacting your local police station about where you can get the
tether anchors installed. In addition, you can make an appointment with
them to actually install the car seat for you...or you can go to one of the
quarterly car seat checks that is open to the community. After having them
install the car seat for my daughter, I was amazed at how many mistakes I
made installing it, and therefore, would only trust them to do it now or in
the future. Having two 250 pound policemen (who are trained to install car
seats) put in your car seat is going to make it a lot tighter and safer than
you could ever do...I know this from experience.
Sherri
My daughter is just about ready for a bigger car seat (she's in the infant carrier kind
right now.) I'm looking for feedback about the Britax "roundabout" or the "Alpha Omega"
by Cosco, specifically with regards to safety, ease of use, installation etc...
Also - we have a 1987 Volvo sedan and I've been told in order to use new car seats
we will have to have "anchors" installed so we can use the tethers that come with the
new car seats. Any thoughts on where to have this done? how much it will cost?
Thanks
Gabrieal
Editor Note: Also see the discussion about
Installing a carseat in an old Volvo
this page was last updated: Oct 14, 2006
The opinions and statements expressed on this website
are those of parents who subscribe to the
Berkeley Parents Network.
Please see
Disclaimer & Usage for
information about using content on this website.
Copyright © 1996-2013 Berkeley Parents Network